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Woman shares video of intruder entering her apartment from second-story balcony
Man was charged with burglary, assault, stalking and malicious destruction of property
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Your support makes all the difference.A woman has shared a TikTok video showing the disturbing moment an intruder reportedly broke into her second-floor apartment while she was dancing at home alone.
In the phone-recorded clip, Hannah Viverette, from Hagerstown, Maryland, can be seen dancing in her apartment to music on Sunday 22 November when a man who allegedly climbed onto her second-story balcony opened the door to her apartment.
After jumping in surprise, the video shows Viverette walking over to her window and asking the intruder “Who are you?” multiple times.
Viverette then backs away as she continuously tells the intruder to “please get out,” with the man asking “Am I your friend?”
The recording also captured the moment the man begins to enter Viverette’s apartment through the balcony door, at which point Viverette leaves the apartment through the main entrance and knocks on a neighbour’s door for help.
On TikTok, where Viverette captioned the clip: “That moment when you’re recording yourself dancing and your stalker climbs your second story balcony to break in,” the video has been viewed more than 26.3m times.
In a press release, the Hagerstown Police Department identified the man as Angel Moises Rodriguez-Gomez, 36, and said he had been charged with burglary in the third- and fourth- degree, second-degree assault, stalking and malicious destruction of property.
@hrviverette That moment when you’re recording yourself dancing and your stalker climbs your second story balcony to break in. ##realshit ##scariestmomentofmylife
♬ original sound - Hannah v.
Rodriguez-Gomez was released on bail on 25 November, with the police department adding: "While there is a video of this incident posted on many social media platforms, the Hagerstown Police Department would like to reiterate that Rodriguez-Gomez is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.”
On Instagram, Viverette shared more details about the encounter, explaining that she recognised Rodriguez-Gomez from her apartment complex, where he lives in the building across from hers.
Recalling how she’d walked over to the door to close it, only to realise there was a man behind it, Viverette wrote: “A face I had seen almost daily in my apartment complex area since moving in, but never spoke a word to. A man that has made a point to watch me and make many uncomfortable advances at me from a distance, for months now.
“For so long I brushed it off, assuming him to ‘just be a creep’. It was the moment I came face to face with him at my door that I knew he was there to harm me.”
Referring to the incident as the “scariest moment of my life,” Viverette also asked her followers to share any information about experiences with Rodriguez-Gomez.
“This cannot be the first attempt he’s ever made to act on stalker behaviour. If anyone knows ANYTHING about this man or have ever felt/been uncomfortable/harassed, assaulted in ANY way by him, PLEASE SPEAK UP!” she wrote. “I refuse to live in fear and I refuse to let him continue doing this to me or ANYONE.”
Speaking to The Independent, Viverette said she decided to share the video because her “perpetrator still walks freely in the apartment building next door to me”.
She has since taken precautions to ensure her safety, including only entering her apartment in the daytime and ensuring she is accompanied by someone else if she needs to enter in the evening.
“I carry pepper spray everywhere I go and stay vigilant to my surroundings since,” she continued, adding that she is also looking into taking self-defense classes and moving out of her current apartment.
As for the response to the viral video, which has included thousands of supportive comments, Viverette said she is “utterly grateful”.
“Since sharing, I am still mind blown,” she said. “I never anticipated it to go viral as it has, but am utterly grateful.
“I’ve received thousands of messages and am doing my best to work through them. Most are graciously an outpour of kind words, strangers sharing their concern and gratitude for my safety,” as well as praise for how quickly she handled the “scary situation”.
On Sunday, Viverette uploaded another video showing her dancing in her apartment, this time with a bat clearly visible near the window.
@hrviverette I’m still dancin. Sun’s still shining. But... My stalker still walks free. Not. Ok. ##dance ##ineedtomove ##ASAP ##fyp ##bishopbriggs
♬ original sound - Hannah v.
“I’m still dancin. Sun’s still shining. But... My stalker still walks free. Not. Ok,” she captioned the clip.
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